Arab region to recover in 2021 with 4.3-pct growth rate: UN survey

BEIRUT, July 15– The Arab economies are expected to recover in 2021 with a growth rate of 4.3 percent after a deep recession in 2020 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey by the Beirut- based UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia said Thursday. Dubbed Survey of Economic and Social Developments in the Arab Region, the survey noted that the…

BEIRUT, July 15 (Xinhua) — The Arab economies are expected to recover in 2021 with a growth rate of 4.3 percent after a deep recession in 2020 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey by the Beirut-based UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) said Thursday.

The ESCWA survey said a positive outlook is projected for all Arab countries except Lebanon, where growth will remain negative at minus 4.6 percent.

Dubbed Survey of Economic and Social Developments in the Arab Region, the survey noted that the unemployment rates are expected to decline slightly in the region as a result of the gradual resumption of economic activities.

The survey’s lead author Mohamed Hedi Bchir explained that recovery would be witnessed in a number of vital sectors such as oil, which would have a positive impact on Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

“Sectors such as aviation and tourism, which are dependent on the progress of COVID-19 vaccination campaigns unlikely to end before 2022, will not register a similar outcome,” he said.

According to the survey, poverty rates will remain significantly high in many Arab countries in 2021, most notably in conflict-stricken ones, with income poverty affecting 88 percent and 83 percent of the population in Syria and Yemen respectively. Enditem